Let's start off with the great discount (40%), but the most important part were the great people I worked with at Stoneridge Mall in Pleasanton. Our repeat customers and Sunday class attendees were always a pleasure to see.

Cons

1. On-call shifts should just be shifts. Almost every time I was on-call, I came in to work. Makes it hard to plan for child-care 2 hours before you have to come in to work.2. If it hasn't been implemented already, WS should have an online scheduling tool where employees can request vacation days, print out their week's schedule, or swap hours with current employees. As a part-time employee with an active family, I would have appreciated this tool.

Advice to Management

1. Provide your employees in the stores with an online scheduling tool.2. Use the sales associates as a focus group to get information about your products and possible prodcuts.

I really enjoyed the people that I worked with. The 40% seasonal discount was nice too. The managers are excellent and try very hard to build a great atmosphere. The merchandise is beautiful.

Cons

This business has changed. At this point they value profits over service and it's hurting them. I came in as seasonal help with the possibility of full time work. During the Christmas season I watched as the managers were demoralized by having to send us home during the middle of the day even when the store was busy because corporate gave a mandate to slash payroll, right in the middle of the busiest season. I gave up my days (On Call ) because I told my managers to give them to someone who really needed the hours. We were told not to offer gift wrapping, and one week before we had been told to offer it to everyone. It was misleading because they initially offered me close to 30 hours a week, but I never got more than 13 and that was on a good week. I would have taken one of the other jobs offered to me if I'd known that. They try to keep you around in January so that you can work inventory in Feb , but it became very clear when they started asking even the managers if they would cut their hours (and these women work HARD!) that there would be no job offered. The managers are completely stressed out by the unrealistic expectations and the irritated sales staff. I was asked why I did not want to continue and my response was simple. This is a company that I always admired. I couldn't take a job with them now after seeing what their managers (who are great) go through on the whims of the DM's and the other higher ups. They've lost their professionalism.

Advice to Management

Several things. Go back to what made you good. Your service made you different. You've become like any other discounter. Every one knows that it will be going on sale eventually so they wait for that. Everyday we were told of a new promotion. I was told that the All clad slow cooker would not be going on sale again , but I knew better. I bought it somewhere else and then watched as it did indeed go back to the promotional price. Stop requiring that your sales staff push the Visa Card. It's either a good tool or it's not, but your customers hate that. They all look at you and say...I don't need another card. American express offers way better perks so you can't compete. No one wants to give email at this point either and quite frankly its because every morning there's another promotional email from you.

Stop the On Call hours. This is disrespectful. Quite frankly, you are building a culture where people do not respect your time, because you don't respect theirs. Putting someone on-call and expecting them to wait until the morning to find out if they're needed is simply lower class policy for a business with the reputation that you once had. I was shocked to find out that you employed it. You need people to work for you who can service the caliber of customer that you have. Quite frankly? We have lives and we need to schedule them.

Your bridal registry is insulting and if you're not going to offer more service to your brides than just handing them the gun then you should get out of the bridal business. You do not offer a complete enough selection, nor are your associates well trained enough to really be good bridal registry consultants. Let your managers have more input into what needs to happen in their store. Each store is a different microcosm of the community that it serves. You've forgotten that and at this point your branding is working against you. You're over-branded , hence you've gotten generic and unexciting. In short? YOu've lost the essence of what made you great. It's not too late. Go back!